Chronicles of the Drowned City
by sembiring kembaren
Summary: The Yggdrasil Labyrinth is a vast, unknown place. What is it? Where did it come from? What lies the deeper you go in there? Now, a band of people are in search for the answers. Let's look into their long, exciting journey, shall we?
1. Chapter 1

A/N: HUZZAH! Finally, a non-crossover story! Man, it's been a long time since I've done one of these...

Anyway, I don't really have much planned out for this, other than the fact that it'll be based (well using) the EO3 story. So, it's kindda like a novelisation, y'know? Anyway, let's just see how it goes.

Heh, for once the writer is as clueless as te readers are! *that did not make sense, I know... *facepalms**

Warning & Disclaimer: EO3 or any of the other EO titles (including 4) does not belong to me. Also some of the names don't belong to me either. They're my friend's first names.

Enjoy~!

* * *

Chronicles of the Drowned City

Prologue...

_Armoroad._

_Once a large, prosperous city brought down by the Calamity 100 years ago._

_Now having discovered ruins under it's seas, which then became known as the Yggdrasil Labyrinth, it's making it's road to recovery. _

_Though long has the city been rebuilding, it still hasn't gone back to it's former glory._

_What's more, no one truly knows what lies behind that maze of a forest._

_What is it? Where did it come from? What lies in it the deeper you go?_

_All those questions run through people's minds, whether normal people or explorers. Hence why so many people are attracted to this place._

_Now a man journeys to Armoroad, relinquishing his title as a Knight of Aeaea and becoming an explorer out of curiosity alone. _

_Armed with his skill and wits, the man sets sail to Armoroad, not knowing what the future holds for him._

_A new adventure is about to start._

-TBC-

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A/N: Well, now, this sucked... *le sigh* Anyway, the first chapter will be uploaded along with this one, so yeah! ^v^


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Well, here's the first chapter! Hopefully this'll turn out nicely. Like I said, I'm just as clueless as you all are!

Enjoy~!

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Chronicles of the Drowned City

Chapter 1: Welcome to Armoroad!

"Heinrich, you feeling okay?" A young lady called. The man, Heinrich, turned his attention from the journal he's writting to the young princess in front of him. He sighed.

"I'm alright, my lady," he said, but then his face turned green slightly ,"...at least, I think I am."

"Well, if you knew about your tendencies to get seasick in a long voyage, why did you do it? That's a pretty stupid idea, coming out of you," the young princess said. She didn't intend to mock him, and Heinrich understood that. After all, he's been the Princess' bodyguard for a long time now, she's become like a daughter he never had.

See, Heinrich was once a member of the Knights in Aeaea. Specifially, he was also assigned to be the Princess' bodyguard. By herself.

Well, not necessarily "assigned" per se. The princess just clinged onto the man almost everyday, everywhere. She would talk to him at times whenever she had problems, and whenever she was attacked Heinrich would defend her out of his own whim. As they got closer, she asked that he become her personal bodyguard.

He didn't know why, but he agreed. She was pretty lonely after all, and someone needs to help train her in combat, but after sometime of training, he knew just how talented she was. Especially with a sword.

And that's how the Princess is here now. After Heinrich mentioned about his leave, the Princess insisted that she come with him. After a bit of an argument, the Hoplite finally gave up and let her come with him.

They stayed quite for a moment before Heinrich heaved another sigh.

"I understand. Though, you may want to choose your words more carefully, my lady," He said. The young lady suddenly laughed loudly.

"Ahahaha, c'mon, Heinrich! We've been through this like what, 3 times already. You and I aren't "Princess and Bodyguard" anymore! We're the same!" She said, sitting up, turning to him. "So, you can just call me Adisa, got it?" She said and flashed him a smile.

Heinrich sighed. The blond-haired princess is just so different if she's arond people she's familiar with. Especially him. From the way she talks, to the way she acts. Though it wouldn't normaly be beffiting of someone of her lineage, he somehow found it quite fitting for someone like her.

"Alright, alright m-um.. Adisa," Heinrich said, nearly slipping and calling her "my lady" again. Adisa looked to the side.

"Aww, c'mon~. No need to be nervous about it! I'm perfectly okay with that! I was the one who told you to call me that, after all~," she said. Indeed, the lady is _very_ different from when she's around people she doesn't know...

"Anyway," Adisa began ,"I'm going over to the docks. Wanna come with?" She asked. The brown haired Hoplite shook his head, and the young lady nodded, flashing another smile at him before opening the door and going out to the docks.

Of course Heinrich couldn't go outside. The more he looks at the sea, the more sick he gets.

* * *

Adisa walked to the docks, the sound of metal boots reverberating through the air with each step she took. Once she reached the end of the docks, she stood there, closing her eyes, taking in the clear, fresh air. Ah, the breeze feels so good! Just standing here refreshes her surprisingly weary body. She then opened her eyes. The minute she opened it, she saw what looked to be dry land. And a city, at that!

No way.

"I see land!" She told herself. Well, this ride turned out quicker than expected. Heinrich will be so happy to hear this. She then ran out of the docks to her room.

Heinrich was busy writing his journal when the door to the room suddenly slammed open. He snapped his attention and averted his gaze from the book to the door, only to see Adisa standing there with a very wide grin on her face. And I mean _wide_.

"We're there, Heinrich! We're almost at Armoroad!" Adisa exclaimed cheerfully. Heinrich's eyes widened. Really? They're at Armoroad already? That fast?

Before he could ponder it any further, he felt his hand being gripped, and the next thing he knew, he was dragged onto the docks by Adisa herself.

They stopped at the end of the docks, and Adisa pointed to the landmass in front of them.

"See? That's it! That's Armoroad!" She said, smiling. It looked like her grin just widened. Was that even possible?

Heinrich sighed. "Wow, you really are excited about this trip," he said and his head turned towards the waters below their ship. Adisa's expression turned from happiness to that of... well, I don't know how to describe it.

"Wait- Heinrich, don't-" She warned, but before she could stop him, the man was already looking at the waters below them. Soon enough, his face turned green and he began vomiting.

Adisa couldn't help but laugh at that.

* * *

"We're here," Heinrich said, still trying to recover, but happy at the fact that he no longer had to worry about his sea-sickness. Ah, finally, dry land! It's been a long time since we last saw you~.

I'm not kidding though. They've been sailing for quite a while, that Heinrich's sea-sickness surprisingly subsided. He didn't puke as much. His sea-sickness is one of the worst anyone could get, in Adisa's opinion. Just about half an hour above water-maybe less, and he'd puke like there's no tomorrow.

"This place looks hella nice!" Adisa said cheerfully. Heinrich smiled as well. Just from looking at this place, he could tell just how glorious the city once was. He felt like he just stepped into an entirely new _world_. This place is really different from Aeaea!

"Well, I heard that if you want to explore the Labyrinth, you have to have a Guild first." Heinrich thought out loud. The princess nodded, letting him continue. "Shall we go, then?" The Hoplite said. The Princess nodded eagerly.

"I take it ya want to explore that Labyrinth they found, eh?" Someone said. Both of them turned towards him. They are greeted by the captain of the ship, a smile gracing his face.

"Yes, how did you know?" Adisa said, suddenly taking a more polite manner and tone. The captain chuckled a bit.

"Most of my passengers are explorers headed for the Labyrinth!" The captain began. "Listen, if you want to make a guild, just go to the Explorer's Guild! It's west of here," The captain said, pointing to the west. Well... north-west, I guess. Around there.

"Right. Thank you," Heinrich said with a stern face. He couldn't really trust him, but hey... he knows nothing about this place. Adisa bowed slightly and followed Heinrich. The captain waved at them.

"Good luck! That place's much more dangerous than ya think!" the captain warned them. The princess flashed a soft smile at the man, her eyes turning soft as well. They both then dissapeared among the crowds.

-TBC-

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A/N: Ya know... I might actually try updating after I've done a few chapters... ya know what? Meh, I'll update if I feel like it. *curse you, Ujian Nasional... *le cry**

And now I shall go and do by Biology homework... *creeps away*


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Alright, maybe after this chapter I'll upload the fic (and update it at the same tie, lol~ *kicked*)

So yeah! Here comes the others into the party! v

*Warning and Disclaimer are in the first chapter, thank you very much~*

Enjoy~!

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Chronicles of the Drowned City

Chapter 2: Welcome to our Guild!

The Princess and the Hoplite looked around the western part of the city. In fact, this is actually their 3rd time going around it, yet they still couldn't find the Explorer's Guild.

Finally, Adisa bumped into a lady with short brown hair wearing red clothes and weird looking gloves.

"Umph! S-sorry, ma'am!" Adisa apologized The lady looked down in surprise. Adisa looked up. The lady's gaze was sharp, piercing at her like knives. She also has this mysterious aura around her, that seemed to agitate Adisa a bit.

"Oh, no, no! I wasn't looking at where I was going," The lady began. Her presence immediately changed as she said this. It became much... calmer-softer, so to say. That mysterious aura seems to have subsided a little bit, but is still there. But her gaze just turned a lot softer. It isn't piercing at Adisa like knives anymore.

Adisa chuckled a bit before asking ,"Listen, I know this is sudden, but do you know the way to the Explorer's Guild?"

The young lady smiled and pointed at the building behind her. "I do. It's this building back here," she said. Adisa looked dumbfounded. How the hell...?

Okay, that building looks grand as _hell_. So how in the _world _did they miss it?

She then bowed and thanked the lady and ran off to find Heinrich.

* * *

Elsewhere, Heinrich is looking around, having trouble moving because of his heavy and thick armor.

"Heinrich!" He heard someone call. He turned to where the voice came from. Adisa.

"Adisa. Have you found it?" Heinrich asked. Adisa nodded and dragged the man to where the building is.

* * *

Heinrich looked at the grand looking building in front of him. A part of it looks to be perched on top of a hill.

Now, how did he miss _that_?

"How we missed it, I have no idea. But c'mon!" She said and started walking into the building. Heinrich snapped out of it and rushed after Adisa.

Honestly, that girl sometimes...

* * *

The minute they went inside the guild, they knew just how crowded this place is. And could get.

And they also had a feeling that this place could get much more crowded than this. I mean, a short person could actually _die_ here!

Well, there goes a list of other places you could die in besides the Labyrinth.

In the middle of the crowd, they could see a tan man sitting in a counter, busy filling out paperwork, as well as passing certificates, scrolls and documents to the new guilds as well as answering some questions from some other guilds all at once. Man, that guy must really hate his job...

Adisa partly wanted to wait a bit until at least this place gets less crowded and the man in the counter gets a chance to catch his breath. But another part of her also wants to just dive in there and get this over with so the man has less to worry about by the time the day ends.

Adisa decided to just dive in there. She walked into the crowd-which left little space for her to move, carefully navigating her way to the man in the counter. Heinrich however... isn't having such an easy time.

Each time he took a step, he bumped into someone. And again, this is all because of this armor he's wearing. He's actually much thinner than he looks while his armor's on.

Finally reaching the counter in the middle of the crowd, Adisa called to the man sitting in it.

"Excuse me," She said rather loudly, just so the man can hear her. Heinrich stood behind her. As the man in the counter handed another scroll to the other group of explorers, he turned his head towards the two newcomers, biting his brush since his hand is full.

"Yeah?!" Came a loud, muffled response. It's really hard to talk when your in a crowd like this. It's way too noisy.

"This is the Explorer's Guild, right?" Heinrich said. The man nodded as he filled in a set of paperwork.

"Then we want to make a guild!" Adisa said. The man's brush hovered in mid-air. He then sighed heavily. Ok, just how bad could today get...?

"*sigh* Alright, alright, here," The man said as he handed a pile of scrolls and papers to the two of them. Adisa took the whole pile in her arms, but she couldn't carry it all, so Heinrich took most of the pile in his hands. The man sighed and handed them a quill pen and a bottle of ink.

"Here. See that parchment on top of the pile that guy's holding?" He began, pointing at the pile of scrolls and paperwork Heinrich is holding. Adisa nodded and let the man continue.

"Fill in that parchment with the details of your guild. Like your Guild name, for example," the man said. "Think long and hard about it. Your guild may become famous someday," the man finished and got back to work. Heinrich stood there for a second. Guild name... now, what would a good guild name be...?

"Heinrich," Adisa called. Heinrich turned his attention to her. Adisa then gestured towards the empty seats just across the crowd.

"Let's go sit over there and fill these up," she said and started walking, Heinrich following behind her.

Once seated, they got to work on filling the parchment.

"Guild name, huh? What would a good one be...?" Adisa thought out loud. Heinrich is also thinking the same thing as well. Then, something came to mind.

"How about "Zephyr"?" He said.

" 'Zephyr'...," Adisa repeated ,"yeah, I think that sounds good," Adisa said, and filled in the parchment.

"Now all we have to do is gather members," Heinrich said and grabbed a scroll labeled "Guild candidates". He opened it and holy cow, there is a _lot_ of names here. But before he could go through the names and pick some people he wanted to interview, he heard people coming towards where the two of them are right now.

"C'mon, let's go ask those guys!" A voice, which sounded female said.

"Do you even know if they're forming a Guild or not?" Another voice, this time sounding male, responded, sounding rather irritated.

"That's exactly why we're asking them!" The female voice responded. Heinrich raised an eyebrow. Did they mean him and Adisa?

"Ah! Hello, I'm sorry to interrupt you like this," the young lady who Heinrich heard said, sheepishly smiling at him, scratching the back of her head. She's a red-head, with foreign looking clothes. It looked tattered at the ends and her hands are bandaged for some odd reason. She also had baggy red pants on (if you could call it pants) with sandals on. But other than that, she looked pretty much armorless. Weird for an explorer heading into the Labyrinth, but Heinrich decided not to question her.

"We're very sorry for interrupting you like this," the young boy behind her began ,"are you, perhaps, new explorers?" the young boy asked. He also wears foreign clothes, but he had light, full body armor on. His clothes are nearly all red-save his armor and "pants", with two swords snugged rather loosely on what looked to be a cloth tied around him-one shorter than the other, brown hair tied in a pony-tail and looked rather messy.

His gaze is cold. It pierced like knives-nearly like the lady Adisa met, only much more intense. He also had this aura around him- a fearsome aura. Whereas the girl next to him is the exact opposite. Just her presence seems uplifting somehow. Her gaze is lively and she's cheery. Like I said, the exact opposite of the man next to her.

From this, Adisa could conclude that both of these people are from the east. Only she didn't say that because it's not important. At all. Especially not when your on the same boat.

"Yes, we are. I heard your little argument back there. I take it you came to us so that you can join the Guild?" Heinrich guessed. The red-head lady nodded eagerly. The brown haired man sighed.

"Yes, we are. We've been here for days now, but we still haven't been accepted into any of the Guilds," the man said rather coldly. The red-head frowned at him, but then she smiled when as she turned towards Heinrich and Adisa.

"So... can we join in yours?" She asked. Adisa nodded.

"Yeah, sure you can!" Adisa agreed. Heinrich jolted slightly.

"W-wait, are you sure that's alright?" Heinrich said. Adisa looked at him. Heinrich sighed. Oh well...

"First, tell me your name and class," he said. The red-head smiled and looked at the young man behind her, who just stared at her with a stare saying "go on, tell him".

"Alright! I'm Cia, a monk!" The red-head, Cia introduced herself.

"Hiroyuki, shogun," The young man, Hiroyuki introduced himself. Cia chuckled slightly.

"But you can call him Yuki," she said, trying to hold back her laughter. Yuki sighed. Just what is it with people thinking Yuki is a girl only name...?

"Upmh!" They heard someone yelp, then turned to where that voice came from.

A girl wearing a dark purple dress... something... is lying on the ground, a book, which they assumed is her's, lying on the ground as well in front of her, closed. It looks like she got out of that crowd, but then tripped on something. She looks pretty short too. Glad she didn't get stomped to death in there.

"Nngh...," the young lady groaned as she got up, those things on her back following her movement. She then repositioned her hat and took notice of the people in front of her, and the parchments one of them are holding.

"U-umm...," the young lady shyly began ,"are you... a new guild?" She nervously asked. Her voice sounded soft, and very quite, too. Her hair is a straight, light purple, going all the way to her lower back. Her frame is also small compared to everyone else in this whole entire building- they could easily tell that she's still very young, but they could also feel that wise air around her. Heinrich knew immediately upon sight, though, that the girl's a Zodiak.

"Yes, we are. Are you here to join?" Heinrich asked. The young Zodiak nodded.

"Yes! I'm Zakaria, a Zodiak," she said. Adisa nodded as she filled in the parchment. Zakaria walked closer to the group as Yuki went to where the girl fell and got her book.

"Here," he said, handing over the book to her. Zakaria took it and held it close to her.

"Thank you," she said. Yuki smiled softly. He then turned towards Heinrich and Adisa.

"Alright, that's five!" Adisa said. "It says here that your only allowed to bring in 5 members at a time into the Labyrinth," Adisa continued. Heinrich nodded.

"Just the five of us should suffice for now. We'll be seeing more members as we go in deeper, though," Heinrich said and stood up.

"So... what's the Guild's name?" Cia asked.

"Zephyr!" Adisa said.

-TBC-

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A/N: Well, now, this was long! Anyway... that's enough for now... Wow, 3 chapters at once... *facepalms*

And now, I shall upload all these chapters ... *creeps into FFN*


	4. Chapter 4: Preparation! Wellnot really

A/N: As I said, I'll update whenever I feel like it, and I feel like writing the next chapter now, so yeah! Have fun reading, peeps~! ^V0

Ahahahaha, I can't believe I made a filler-chapter... or whatever you call it... TT^TT

Enjoy~!

* * *

**Chronicles of the Drowned City**

**Chapter 3: Preparation time~!**

"What?"

"Yeah, sorry... you folks can't accept requests until you finished that assignment the old lady at the Senatus gives to every new Guild," the bartender lady said, a hint of slight dissapointment in her tone. Heinrich sighed. He should've known it wouldn't be as easy as forming a new Guild and signing up for it. You have to _prove_ yourselves that your completely _capable _of _surviving _in the Labyrinth.

"But...," the lady bartender began ,"you could have some chattin's with the other guys here," she continued,"and maybe have a few drinkin's ~," she finished. Heinrich nodded. He decided to talk with some of the native explorers from this place. They then scattered into the bar.

Adisa and Cia came across a man named Wolfram, who's a Troubadour. Adisa knew what Troubadours are like. They talk in riddles at times, telling normal information like stories or fairytales, making them sound more interesting and complicated at the same time. All they knew is that 1. The Calamity happened over 100 years ago, and ruined the city. You know, all those things we already know. 2. The Aristocratic family in the Senatus is actually the one governing the city. The King (I think), and the other guys have been reduced to just being figureheads. And 3. The Princess here is always named Gutrune. All of them. Same exact name. The title "Porcelain Princess" came from their skin, which looked as white as Porcelain. Basically, she was a _beauty_.

Thing is, Wolfram always ends his "tales" with saying "we'll save that for a later time, yes?" and would talk about said-topics no more.

Heinrich, on the other hand, met this very... lively lady, who is a veteran explorer of the Labyrinth apparently. She told him about Great Lynxes –which are these fox-like creatures that wipe out most explorers that are new to the Labyrinth. But she also says that they're great for training new explorers if you'd take the risks.

On the other hand, Yuki and Zakharia are walking around the pub. Zakharia was clinging to Yuki the whole way, almost as if she's scared. Except she's not.

"Umm... would you mind letting go of me for a second?" Yuki said in a surprisingly soft tone, not the cold tone like he always uses when talking to Heinrich and the others. He has a soft spot for children, after all.

Zakharia just looked at him with her beady, purple eyes. Her stare was empty, but something in it is saying "no".

Based on previous observations, Yuki concluded that the girl is not the shy type- rather, the stoic, quite type. Very quite I might add. In fact, this whole time, she hasn't said a word. The only way Yuki could tell what she's saying is by looking at her eyes. Thankfully, he mastered the art of reading one's thoughts by looking them in the eye. Although it's starting to get a little creepy, having to stare at her all the time.

Though that begs the question: Why is she clinging onto him? Oh well, maybe the girl just can't handle crowds.

Yuki sighed and continued on, until they finally reached the end of the pub, which led to a sort of balcony. There are some seats there, but most of them are empty. There are some seats that are taken, but the one at the edge of the balcony isn't. So he decided to take that seat and wait for the others.

"C'mon, Zakaria," Yuki said, motioning for her to follow him. Zakharia quickly went to his side and grabbed his hand, holding onto it as she walked.

All of them are here in the pub right now because of one thing- well two. One, it's because they wanted to see if they could take requests. Which was stupid considering they're practically new. The other...

Let's just say it's a bad day to go shopping.

See, they we're poorly equipped- even Yuki's well kept sword and Heinrich's armor is rusted a bit due to usage. They had little funds, though. Only 500 En at most, and that's all their money combined (plus Zakharia, who was running _very_ low on money). They decided that they should just buy decent equipment with the money they have, but save some money as well. And so they headed for Napier's Firm.

There, they we're greeted by the lady shopkeeper, She wore foreign clothes, almost like Cia's and Yuki's-except this one is just casual and not for combat. She then showed them some of the goods in the shop. They we're decent enough. Thing is, they don't have much supplies to make better equipment, so they're receiving supplies from the explorers in the Labyrinth. Ok, so they have to gather stuff. Doesn't sound so bad. In fact, it's a pretty fair deal, considering _they'll _be the ones using said equipment.

Actually, what made the day in the shop so bad... is their current items.

Well, the prices actually.

This is especially bad for Cia. She did _not_ like things being _this_ expensive. She protested quite rudely

to the shopkeeper about the prices. Yuki and Adisa tried to stop her, and Heinrich soon joined in the

little fight, but Cia went too far and the shopkeeper had to drag her out of the shop.

And, so, that's how they're here right now. They did manage to buy a few decent things before they

were forced to drag Cia out due to her outburst, so these should suffice.

Yuki sat down on one of the chairs, facing the sea, while Zakharia followed suit, sitting on the chair

next to his. The view looked nice, the breeze is nice...

What will the Labyrinth look like?

Zakaria, on the other hand, is busy marveling at the sound of the sea and waters, and the ocean

breeze as well as the birds chirping all around them, and as well as the bustling city just outside of

the pub.

"What does it look like?" Zakharia suddenly asked. Yuki jolted slightly. What? The girl actually said

something?

"What it looks like?" Yuki asked back. That's a weird question.

"Mhm," Zakharia hummed and faced Yuki. Although not looking at exactly where Yuki is, she could

still feel his presence. "I can't see," she admitted.

Yuki just sat there. That answers why she always clinged onto him. She needed a guide to tell her

where she's going. "Your... blind?" Yuki decided to ask. Zakharia nodded.

"I... got into an accident while going into the Labyrinth in Etria. That accident caused me to lose my

sight and I decided to stop exploring. But then I decided to try again," she explained. "I'm still trying

to get used to it, but I'm able to see without my eyes," she continued, gesturing to her eyes. Yuki

nodded. So the girl went into a Labyrinth before? This isn't her first time, then.

"But, I only got to the second floor, so... I'm not too experienced," Zakharia said, with her usual,

empty tone.

"It looks nice," Yuki suddenly said. Zakharia perked up a bit.

"In front of you is a port. You can hear it, right? It's bustling with people. Explorers, or normal

people, they're all there," he explained. His eyes then shifted to the skies and sea.

"The water's a clear blue and so is the skies," Yuki continued ,"you can picture it, right?" he asked.

Zakharia nodded. She could tell today is a bright day. Her face is still the normal, stoic face she always

has, but Yuki could see a hint of a smile there. He smiled a bit too. He's happy that he could make

the girl feel better.

Man, he really does have a soft spot for kids.

"Oi, you two!" Yuki heard someone call. Cia.

"C'mon! We're headed into the Labyrinth right now!" Adisa said. Heinrich is with them as well. Yuki

sighed. And he was just starting to enjoy the view...

"Alright, alright," he said, sounding slightly irritated. But really, he's quite excited about all this. He

finally gets to see the Labyrinth for himself for the first time. He then got up and grabbed Zakharia's

hand.

"C'mon," He said and started walking. Zakharia followed suit.

-TBC-

* * *

A.N: Sorry if this chapter is Shogun and Zodiak centric. I felt like writing about those two... *punched

so hard*

Anyway, I guess I'll update tomorrow... it's late at night and I got school, okay?

And now I shall study... *creeps into bookshelf*

*btw, I just realized you spell Zakharia with an "H". Ggrrr... *groans**


	5. Chapter 5: First floor missiontest!

A/N: Yo, peeps! I feel like writing another chapter, so here ya go!

After this, I'll upload both chapters 3&4... -_-''

Warning and Disclaimer in the first chapter, thank you very much!

Enjoy~!

* * *

**Chronicles of the Drowned City**

**C.4: Entering the Yggdrasil Labyrinth**

"Well, here we are," Adisa said, looking at the grand building in front of them.

After another visit by Zakharia and Yuki to Napier's Firm (which surprisingly the lady shopkeeper allowed), they decided that this would be a good time to head into the Labyrinth. So, they headed to the Via Senatus-where the government works.

Heinrich pushed the double-door open, revealing an -as expected- grand looking interior. It looks as if this place is paved with gold. Only it isn't. The walls are part brick, part wood. It's also very open -surprisingly, for a workplace-, and had some stairs leading to the second floor. Heinrich and the others went up the stairs –Zakharia stumbling a few times and Yuki and Cia helping her.

Once they got to the second floor, another set of double-doors greeted them, with a guard standing in front of it.

"Excuse me," Heinrich said. The guard turned, facing them, but just stood there, having the usual stern expression behind his mask. He then spoke with a deep, stern voice.

"What business do you have here?"

"We're here to see the Senatus," Adisa said, cutting off Heinrich as he was just about to say the same thing. The guard then nodded.

"I see. So your the new Guild I heard about," he began, then moved to the side and opened one of the doors ,"You may see the Senatus, then," he finished. Heinrich nodded and walked into the room, the others following him.

As soon as they got in there, they are greeted by an equally stern looking old lady. Her office -even though full of paper, still looks as grand as the other parts of the building. The old lady shifted her attention from the paperwork she's doing, to the people coming into her office.

"What have we here? Are you the new Guild I heard about?" The old lady asked. Her presence is intimidating. Or maybe it's more in the lines of commanding?

Zakharia crept a bit closer towards Yuki, her grip on his clothes tightening, her expression turning into a slight scowl.

"Yes," Heinrich answered. The old lady smiled a bit. She then stood up from her chair and walked towards them, stopping in front of Heinrich.

"This is the Via Senatus," she began ,"and I am the one which governs this place. Here, we separate the cowards from the true explorers," she explained. Heinrich nodded. So she's the one that looks after these things.

"If you want to go into the Labyrinth, first complete the mission I issue to you," she said, and walked back to her desk, opening the drawer, and grabbing a sheet of paper. She then handed it over to them ,"the mission is quite elementary. You'll get more details on it when you get into the Labyrinth," the old lady finished and sat back down on her desk. Heinrich nodded and gestured for the others to walk out of the room.

As soon as the doors closed, all of them heaved a heavy sigh.

"Oh wow... that was too much pressure for me to handle...," Adisa said, then taking a deep breath and releasing it.

"We'll be seeing more of her soon, I suppose," Heinrich said.

"That is, if we pass the test," Yuki said coldly. Zakharia's grip on him relaxed, but she stayed quiet.

"You ok, Zakharia?" Cia asked. Zakharia simply nodded, and Yuki gestured for her to start walking again.

"That lady was pretty cocky though, wasn't she?" Cia started, as soon as they got out of the building.

"Cia...," Yuki hissed ,"we're still in front of her office building," Yuki said and half-dragged her to the others, Zakharia, as usual, clinging on to him as she walked.

"Hey, Heinrich?" Adisa began. Heinrich turned his attention to her and let her continue.

"What would the Labyrinth look like?" Adisa asked. Heinrich sighed.

"We'll find out soon," he began ,"we are headed there right now, after all," he finished.

* * *

Once they got to the entrance of the Labyrinth, they went down the set of stairs there, and ended up on the first floor of the Labyrinth.

This place is beautiful. 'Nuff said.

"Whoa...," Adisa said, bewildered.

"I've never been into a Labyrinth before, but I've heard stuff about this place..," Cia began ,"It's hard to believe that a lot people died here," she finished.

"Don't let your guard down, though," Heinrich said ,"this place is still dangerous. Don't let it deceive you," he warned ,"now, c'mon," he finished, gesturing for the others to follow him.

Oddly enough, Zakharia stayed quite. Perhaps she's stunned enough by the sounds in the Labyrinth?

As they walked, they marveled at this place's beauty. The sky is a sea of green, as the trees are covering up the sky itself, but leaving room for sunlight to pierce into the Labyrinth like thin sheets, the Labyrinth looking as if it's shimmering slightly from the light.

Grass covered the ground, while beds of flowers decorated the passages with different colours-red, pink, and maybe beds of blue flowers at some places that they discovered marked secret passageways -shortcuts, you might say.

And all this makes passages, and more branching passages: trees forming walls, the grass making the ground they walk on, flowers becoming markers, forming a beautiful, naturally made maze that no one could ever dream of making.

This place is simply _marvelous_.

"Oy! I found another one," Cia said, pointing at the bed of flowers in front of her. Heinrich walked over to where she is and pushed the bed of blue flowers gently to the side, inspecting it.

"Hmm... I don't think we'll be able to get past this thing from here," he began, then pointed at Zakharia ,"well... maybe Zakharia can, but as you said Yuki, she's blind," Heinrich finished. Zakharia nodded-though not looking at exactly where Heinrich is. Heinrich then marked the passageway on the map, and all of them continued onwards. They then came across the clearing, which Heinrich drew after doing some quick calculations (surprisingly he knows how to draw maps _very well_), while the rest took a look around the clearing.

"I'm surprised that monsters haven't attacked us yet," Cia said. Adisa nodded ,"but this place is still beautiful. I've been into forests before, but never into anything like _this_," She explained ,"it's no wonder explorers are attracted to this place," she finished. Cia nodded ,"I completely agree with you," she said. They all then proceeded though the narrow passage east of the clearing -Cia spotting yet another bed of flowers in the clearing that they nearly missed (which they can't go though yet).

As they walked down the passage, they came into a crossroad, with a guard blocking one of the passages -north of where they're facing right now.

"Stop," the guard said, and Heinrich and the others did just that.

"Are you the new guild I heard?" He asked. Heinrich nodded and let him continue.

"Alright. Then, welcome to the Yggdrasil Labyrinth. This place may seem beautiful, but it's hazardous at the same time, so stay on your toes," the guard warned.

"Yeah, like we didn't know that..." Cia muttered. Yuki then nudged her hard on the sides.

"Oww! What was that for?!" She said, but Yuki shushed her. The guard then started explaining about mapping in the Labyrinth-tools, signs, etc. Even though Heinrich is _amazingly_ good at mapping, he still listened, and so did the others. After he's finished, the guard marked an area on the map with his pencil.

"Now, all you have to do is map this part of the Labyrinth. Once your done, come back here, and I'll check the results. If you get even the smallest details wrong, you'll have to go back and re-map the area," the guard explained briefly. Adisa sighed. Well, this is a pain. At least Heinrich will draw the map, right?

"Alright all of you, let's go," he said, walking in front of the others, going towards the west route first.

They only took a few steps into the area, when they're suddenly attacked by... a giant (well maybe not giant, but it certainly is _big_) toad, and a red fish which... only has a head and feet?

Ok, the Labyrinth is beautiful... But the monsters are certainly weird looking.

None the less, Yuki charged at them. Seeing as how weak they are, Yuki easily killed them with a few swipes of his sword.

"Yeah, I may have jinxed our trip just now...," Cia said, and Yuki sighed, sheathing his sword. Heinrich then drew on the map (Adisa correcting him a little), while Zakharia stood there, closing her eyes.

"Alright then, let's move on," Heinrich said, motioning for the others to follow him. Soon after, he stopped. Adisa bumped into him.

"Ow!" She yelped, but Heinrich shushed her. His spear is on the ready, and he stood there, motionless, trying to pick up a sound. He then heard rustling noises from the bushes. A toad then jumped out, and Heinrich immediately stabbed it with his spear, the toad dying soon after. Adisa sighed.

"What's with all these toads? I thought they only came out at night," she said. Heinrich then took out his pocket watch.

"Wait, your carrying that in here?!" Adisa asked, pointing at the gold pocket watch.

"It''s 6 o'clock. No wonder...," Heinrich said. Adisa's mouth gaped open. "We've been here for that long?!" she exclaimed. Heinrich nodded.

"Well, time does fly when your in the Labyrinth," Heinrich said and walked on. Adisa then remembered. Toads like these do come out at night. She heard this while they're at the pub.

After a few monsters and abusiveness of Cia's healing skills, they finally finished mapping the western area. They found some treasure: A Medica and 200 en.

Ok... did those belong to past explorers?

They then went on to the eastern end. Zakharia's eyes are still closed. Yuki noticed this and shook her shoulders a bit.

"Zakharia? You ok?" He asked. Zakharia then opened her eyes, empty looking as usual.

"Beware of the red-eyed beast."

"What?" Adisa asked.

"Beware of the red-eyed beast," Zakharia repeated. Heinrich nodded.

"A red-eyed beast, eh...? Alright, we'll look out for those," he said.

"Heinrich, what did she mean?" Adisa asked again.

"It means look out for one of the monsters here. That was a prophecy from the stars," Heinrich said.

"A... prophecy from the stars?" Adisa repeated.

"Yes. It's what Zodiaks do. They can communicate with the stars, and sometimes they'll say prophecies," Heinrich began ,"...or should I say warnings," he continued. Adisa nodded.

A red eyed beast... now which monster fitted that description best?

Oh wait, _most of them do_.

Well, that was a pretty vague warning. But a warning none the less, so they decided to keep that in mind.

And soon after, what the stars warned came true.

A cat of some sorts, with red glowing eyes and yellow fur with blue stripes on it suddenly came at them from within the wall of trees. It lashed at Zakharia and attacked her- but Yuki parried the attack successfully The cat stepped back, at the ready to attack someone again. Soon after, the cat went towards Adisa, who successfully dodged it, and attempted to stab it -failing, but ended up cutting it's shoulder instead. The cat, again stepped back, only to lash out at Adisa again, with her dodging the attack again, but not so good this time, because she ended up getting cut on her shoulders as well. The cat lunges at her again, but then Heinrich stabbed it from the back with his spear. Adisa clutched the wound on her shoulders.

"Thanks," she said. Heinrich nodded. Cia then rushed to Adisa and moved her hand gently away from the wound, revealing it.

"Mind if I take a look at it? Thanks," she said and started patching up the wound. Well, she was lucky to survive that one with just a minor wound! _Very _lucky, I might add.

"Alright, let's move on," Heinrich said, and mapped the part of the passageway they are in. From the distance, he could hear waterfalls. There are a lot here, so maybe they're headed into another clearing?

They then arrived at the clearing. Heinrich mapped it, while the others sat down.

"Whew, I'm tired...," Cia said, lying down on the grass.

"We could rest here, I guess... seems safe enough," Adisa said, leaning on one of the trees. She sighed. The Labyrinth is beautiful, but... she's... not really enjoying it as much as she should so far. Some things in here nearly killed her, while others just annoyed her. And it's not just the monsters either!

After resting, they finished the rest of the map, and headed back to where the guard is. Heinrich handed the map over to the guard. He checked it, and below the mask he's wearing, his expression turned cheerfull.

"Heh, you did a good job here!" The guard said as he re-examined the map. "Alright, then, you passed. Now report back to the Senatus and get your permission to explore the Labyrinth," the guard said.

"My work here is done, so I'll be going now," he said and left his post.

"We should head back, too," Adisa said. Heinrich nodded ,"I'll report to the Senatus. All of you, go to the inn and rent a room. Here," he said, and handed over what money he had left, plus some things he was holding to Adisa.

Adisa took it and handed some of it to the others. Zakharia then looked up at Heinrich.

"Are you sure? Shouldn't we just collect the reward first? It's usually money," she said. Heinrich sighed. "Well, you do have more experience in the Labyrinth than us, even if you only made it to the second floor," he began ,"Alright... all of you wait in the inn, then," he said, and walked off. The others sighed and followed him, going their separate ways when they got to the entrance.

* * *

They all waited at the inn, Zakharia already asleep on Yuki's lap. Cia chuckled at this, but then Yuki smacked her with the sheath of his sword.

"Shut up, you...," he hissed. He hated it when she does this.

"But you two just look so cute together~," Cia said, looking at him with puppy-dog eyes. Adisa chuckled as well.

"I'll have to agree with her on this one. You two just look _amazingly_ adorable~!"she exclaimed. Yuki face-palmed, and at this Zakharia stirred awake.

"Hmm... wha... did I fall asleep...?" she said, half awake. Yuki sighed. "Yes, yes you did," he said. They then heard the distinct sound of footsteps, which only belonged to their Hoplite partner. And lo and behold, here comes Heinrich himself!

"Heinrich! What took you so long?" Adisa asked while running towards him. Heinrich smiled. "The Senatus decided to have a little chat with me, so, sorry if I took too long," he said, and pulled out a pouch, with what looked like...

Money?

"And here's 500 En," he said. Everyone's eyes widened. Really? That much? For a mission like that? Wow... and to think that that mission was only a test..

"A "little" chat would be an understatement, Sir Heinrich," Cia began ,"But then again... Look at all that cash! Now I can take my revenge against that cranky shop-owner...," Cia said, clenching her fists, but is smacked on the head again by Yuki.

"Not so fast, Cia. I'm still here, you know," he said coldly, glaring at her. Cia chuckled a little bit, before it died down and she stopped talking momentarily.

Adisa on the other hand, just looked at that bag of money. That sure is a lot. Now what can they buy with that...? They then heard Zakharia yawn.

"W-Well, shouldn't we rent a room, then? We've got more than enough money now, right?" Adisa said, and then dragged Heinrich into the inn, the others, including a drowzy Zakharia, following them.

"Welcome to Amman's Inn!" The young clerk said, grinning widely at the new visitors, which almost creeped them out. They can't really tell if he's a she or a he. But they didn't mind.

"Here, you can rest up for the night, or just until the evening. Some guilds have their headquarters set up here, too. Of course, you need to pay to rent a room," the young clerck began explaining.

"Oh! We also have doctors here to help out with the wounded explorers! So if you need help, just ask them!" The young clerk finished.

"Alright. How much is it for a room? For one night," Heinrich said.

"5 En," the clerk replied. Heinrich nodded and handed the clerk 5 En. The others just looked at them. What? Well, that was cheap.

"Here you go!" The clerk said, handing over the room key to Heinrich. He took it and thanked the clerk, and walked off to the room, the others following him.

"Have a nice stay!" The clerk said, and continued his work behind the counter.

Once they got into the room, they're quite surprised by what they saw.

Yes, the price was unusually cheap for a room at an inn, but this...

Ok, I guess the prices do match the room's condtion.

There's a table, but it looks like it's about ready to break down. Also, there are only 2 beds. Both of which are only big enough for people around the size of Adisa and Cia to squeeze into. Heinrich, even though he isn't that big, is still big enough to occupy the whole bed. There's also a closet there, but the wood has rotted, it looks like it's ready to break down as well.

And that's basically what's inside this room.

Each of the beds are pinned against the wall, and when Adisa and Cia tried to squeeze in the space there, there was literary no space left. In fact, Adisa, who's pinned against the wall is practically suffocating.

"I don't think the oxygen is reaching my brain," she said, sitting up and gasping for some air.

"Don't push me off the bed when we're asleep, alright?" Cia begged. Adisa sighed.

"I won't be able to promise you anything, sorry," she said. Heinrich occupied the bed on the other side of the room. He took off his armor, revealing the tight clothing he's wearing underneath it. He sat down on the bed, pulling out his journal and writing his next entry.

Yuki, on the other hand, just stood there. He sighed. Where was he supposed to sleep now?

Well... he wouldn't mind sleeping on the floor, but what about Zakharia? He then saw some cloth poking out of the closet. He walked towards the closet, and opened it, revealing some –surprisingly- clean sheets, blankets and pillows. Just enough for him and Zakharia. Ok, good.

He then grabbed the sheets and set them on the floor, along with the blankets and pillows. Except this time, the blankets become the sheets and the sheets become the blankets. Zakharia then went over to where the sheets are set-nearly tripping-, and lied down on it. Yuki did the same.

"Well... I suppose you should be glad," Heinrich began,"you'll suffocate throughout the whole night if you were in Adisa's position right now," he said, while Adisa sat up again, getting some air into her body.

"I doubt I'll be able to sleep tonight," she said, and lied down again. Cia sighed and chuckled sheepishly at Yuki. "Sorry if I fall on top of you by morning," she said.

Yuki sighed. Really? He then looked to the side, and saw Zakharia being quite close to him...

Ok?

She was alseep, facing Yuki. Wow. Has she really gotten that close to him?

Cia, on the other hand, chuckled,"Awww~ I told you the two of you look cute together~," she teased. Yuki glared hard at her before pulling the sheets up to his neck and closing his eyes, turning to his side, facing Zakharia. Cia chuckled one more time before going to bed herself.

Heinrich, still writing his entry, saw all this happen. He then sighed and smiled slightly.

"This should be one hell of an expedition, as the princess would say," he said to himself, wrapped up his entry for the day, lied down and closed his eyes, falling asleep soon after.

-TBC-

* * *

A/N: HUZZAHH! Hey, peeps! I think I'll upload after this one, so yeah! Look forward to the update(s)!

I know, I know, I suck at fighting scenes... GRAAAHH! *cries*

Also, Mad Father and Fragile Dreams (both of which are RPGs) gives me a load of feels, alright? That is all.

And now, I shall go take a shower... *creeps into bathroom*


	6. Chapter 6: New members!

A/N: Heya, peeps! I'm back! Finally, National Exams are finished and I am COMPLETELY FREE FROM SCHOOL. YUSH.

Sure, I'll be in another country for a bit, but I am bringing my laptop there, so I'll write down the chapter if I have the chance. For now, I'll write as much as I can before I go, so yeah! ^v^

Enjoy~

*warning and disclaimer is the first chapter, btw*

* * *

**Chronicles of the Drowned City**

**C.5: New members.**

"We are seriously broke...,"

And just when they thought they had a lot of money. Ah, you didn't spend it to wisely, I see.

See, things in Armoroad are not cheap. At all. They come in relatively high prices, especially at Napier's Firm.

Still, you can't really blame them, though. These are tough times, and people needed as much money as they can get. And new Guilds should know that firsthand.

They, apparently did not consider those things and simply wasted all the money they had.

...Ahem, maybe it wasn't really wasted. But, it kind of is, actually. All they really bought was better armor that's been newly made from the materials they got in the Labyrinth. Honestly... They don't even have that much source for income. About the only thing they can do to gain money is selling materials they got from monsters! Now, those don't really sell for much, do they?

"Arrgh, what do we do..?" Adisa said, facepalming, regreting ever buying that piece of armor she oh-so wanted.

"Well... maybe there's a quest in the pub that gives money as a reward," Zakharia suggested, startling everyone momentarily. They keep on forgetting she's not mute.

"Really?!" Cia said, life suddenly finding it's way back to her almost dead eyes.

"Well... depending on what quest it is...," Zakharia answered nervously. Cia's eyes went dead again a little.

"But some quests can give you items that could sell pretty well. If we're lucky, we may actually fetch a quest that really gives us money," Zakharia explained, still with an emotionless face and a quiet tone. Yuki looked at her for a second. '_How could she know so much?'_ he thought. "Oh wait...," he murmured,"she's already been to the second floor...," he said, mentally slapping himself.

"Hey, hey!"

Heinrich started at the voice, and turned to where it came from. Hey, isn't that...?

"Wait a second, I think I've seen you before," the old man-ahem- captain, I'm sorry, said, pointing at Heinrich. It then came back to him.

"Oh, hey! It _is_ you! Nice to see your Guild's well on it's way towards exploring deeper parts of the Labyrinth!" The captain cheered.

'_Well on our way to exploring deeper parts of the Labyrinth?_" Cia thought ,"_You... wouldn't really want to put it that way..." _

"Well, um, we're broke right now, and-"

"Say no more lad! Heinrich already came and showed me those documents last night! You'll have your own ship from now on!"

Cia's eyes then shone with light like never before. "R-Really?! This ship?!" She pointed it at the ship on the docks.

"Yes! And whatever you catch serves as your income," the captain said.

"In other words _money_?!" Cia and Adisa both said, simultaniously.

"That right!" The captain nodded.

"Yes!" Cia said out loud, prancing about like a kid. Then, came a hit to the back of her head by the Shogun himself.

"Stop it," he said in a venemous tone. Cia then stopped prancing and pouted a little bit.

"'Bout the only thing you need to do now is give her a name. So, what'll it be?"

All five of them then gathered up in a circle. "What do you think, Heinrich?" Adisa asked. Heinrich cupped his chin, thinking. The others are thinking as well. A name for a ship... what should we name it, Heinrich thought.

"How about... "Enterprise"?" Heinrich suggested.

"Or Leviathan?" Adisa inquired. The others thought about the two names.

"Well, Leviathan... sounds nice~, so I guess I'm all for it!" Cia said. "It's connected to the sea, too~," she added.

"I think we should just go with Enterprise," Yuki said,"simply because of that," he continued, pointing at another ship that's also docked. A carving on the ship's side says "Leviathan".

"Argh, damn it... Someone stole that idea from me...," Adisa pouted.

"Or rather _you_ stole their idea," Yuki said, ice hinted all over his tone. Adisa sighed. "I guess you kindda have a point," she said.

"Anyway...," Heinrich said, and walked over towards the captain. "The ship will henceforth be known as the "Enterprise"," Heinrich said. The captain smiled.

"Good, good. I know it's not the best ship here, but she can sail. With a little work, she could actually become one of the best ships around. I mean, she once was...," the captain said, his tone shifting at the last part of his sentence.

"What do you mean "once was"?" Zakharia asked. The captain turned to the little girl –ahem- _Zodiak_, looking shocked for a second.

For one, he knows those eyes. The girl's blind. Second of all, she is _really_ short. He guessed that the girl actually looks older than she looks .

But enough about that. The captain sighed.

"Let's hop to it, then, shall we?" The captain said, trying to change subjects. Zakharia didn't want to let it go yet, but she decided to just let it go and let everything flow as the captain wants it to.

"Sure, alright," Heinrich said.

"But what about that quest?" Cia asked. Heinrich sighed.

"Fine. We'll split in groups. Who wants to do the quest and who will go on the ship?" Heinrich said. Cia and Adisa went for the ship, as did Heinrich. Which leaves Yuki and Zakharia for the quest.

"Right then. Just head over to the pub. It's west of here. You remember, right?" Heinrich said. He knows the layout of this town pretty well now. His little tour last night took him back and forth, passing the Inver Port and the Butterfly Bistro most of the time.

"And if we find any other Guild member?" Yuki asked.

"Up to you," Heinrich said and went off into the ship. He had decent experience with ship, despite his sea sickness. He'll be able to drive one, as long as he keeps his eyes away from the water.

...Erm, scartch that. That is COMPLETELY impossible. His sea sickness is one if the worst after all. Hey wait a second. He knows that fact.

Then why the hell is he currently standing on the ship's docks?

His stomach started to churn. The ship hasn't even sailed yet! Ok, time to get out of here!

Too late.

Before long, the ships anchors are raised, and the ship sails, the captain warning them to hang on.

Before long, Heinrich and the ship itself is already above water, sailing, the vessel swaying from left to right gently as the waves rocked it.

Before long, Heinrich started pouring his breakfeast out of his stomach.

Don't worry. It wasn't like what he ate was good or anything. In fact, he's at least glad it's out.

* * *

Meanwhile, outside of the port, Yuki just realized his mistake. Ah, if only he was able to travel back in time and swap places with Heinrich...

Well, that's not possible, so he grabbed hold of Zakharia's hands and guided her towards the pub.

When they got there, the pub looked more crowded than it did the last time they went in here.

"This place is... really crowded now, isn't it?" Zakharia asked.

"Yeah. And looks like most of them are new guild members looking for quests," Yuki said, but then got dragged towards where Zakharia want's to go, which initially was the counter, but she ended up straying to one of the tables.

After succesfully guiding Zakharia towards the counter, Yuki's eyes immediately spotted one of the bills- the reward being money.

100 En.

Hello, this looks good. There are only two bills left at the moment. Yuki carefully read both. One requests for them to collect frog parts- preferebly cheeks and legs-, the recipient being the pub owner herself, who's standing in front of them right now.

The other requests them to find a sunbathing spot inside the Labyrinth. Ok, that's a weird one. Who would want to sunbathe in the Labyrinth?

"Hello," the lady greeted. Yuki jumped, snapping his head towards her. W-Was she staring at him this whole time?!

The Shogun sighed, trying to hide his embarresment (which apparently he did succesfully), and opened his mouth to say something when the lady cut him.

"Were you looking for quests just now? Sorry, but we'll need to see some papers before we can let you accept some," she said apologetically.

'_Right,' _Yuki said,_'those.' _He then rummaged his bag for those papers Heinrich gave them and took it out, showing it to the bartender.

The bartender read it, and happily nodded.

"Alright, good! Time for you to accept some questin's, then!" She said, going back to her normal way of speaking.

"It's simple! Just accept a quest, get the requirements, and get back here to collect the rewards!" She said, cheerfully.

Zakharia smiled. She then outstretched her hand and touched the board, her hands feeling around the board until it came in contact with a piece of paper. She then grabbed it and tugged on it lightly.

"Which quest is this one?" She asked. Yuki read the paper again. "It's a request to find a sunbathing spot in the Labyrinth," he said, then reads over the rewards section,"and hey, the rewards 200 En. Not bad," he said.

"Why would someone want a sunbathing spot in the Labyrinth, though?" Zakharia asked,"It's pretty dangerous down there, you know."

"Well, I have no idea, but they say there is a spot on the first floor," the bartender inquired,"and that spot's oddly safe from monsters, too."

"Then I guess we find that spot?" Zakharia asked. Yuki nodded.

"I'm guessing you'll take this one then? Ok," the bartender said, and ripped the paper off the board, then handing it over to them. "Keep this with you, 'kay?" she said.

* * *

When they got out of the pub, they saw two people outside –one drunk pirate-looking guy, the other being a dark haired boy, way smaller in terms of stature,wearing black clothes, a straw hat, carrying a...

Is it just me or is she carrying a rake?

Well, if he's headed to the Labyrinth, that wouldn't be good, now would it?

The drunk pirate lookng man happened to turn backwards, spotting the two people who got out of the pub. And the paper they're holding.

A cheeky smile crept up to his face.

"'Ey, there, fella's! *hic*," he said, as he walked towards them, his drink spilling all over the place from inside his bottle.

" !" The young boy next to him called, running after him. Yuki felt something bad coming. _'Oh shit,'_ he thought.

Before long, the captain reached them and swung his hands over Yuki's shoulders.

"Ye'r *hic* a Guild, ain't 'cha *hic*," the captain asked. Yuki nodded awkwardly.

"Yes, we are... I'd appreciate it if you would get your hands off of me, though," he said, grunting a bit as he shoved the man's hands off of him (in a way that didn't make him look like a total douche). He's surprised by how heavy the man's arm is.

"Oh no, I'm sorry!" The boy apologized, bowing. "He's like that sometimes," he said, raising his head.

"No, it's ok," Zakharia said. The young boy sighed. "Listen," he began ,"we've actually been here for a few days, looking for a guild to join," he said,"so, if you really are a Guild," the boy paused for a moment. The others looked at him, telling him to continue.

"Would you... let us join?" He finished. Yuki considered his offer for a moment. The boy, he noticed, had a sheep following him. The rake, a sheep, and the clothes he's wearing. A Farmer, from the looks of it. He remembered sneaking a peek into one if the scrolls Heinrich had when he and Cia joined, and in one of the sections, it said "Farmer".

The other man, however, is quite different. He had pirate looking clothes on, as well as weapons usually owned by pirates. He could easily tell this man is classified as a Buccaneer, in terms of class.

The guild could use more members. Eh... if only one of them isn't a drunk addict. But hey, why not? Besides, this means they would have more people to manage things in the guild. And this man has an accuantince with him who'll keep watch, so it should all be good.

Hopefully.

"Alright. What are your names, so we can get you registered?" Yuki asked, cold as usual. It sent shivers down the Farmer's spine. Ok, looks like he's going to have quite the rough stay.

"'K, then... *hic* Name's Rudollf," the Buccaneer said, his cheeky smile getting wider.

"And I'm Guad, a farmer. Nice to meet you," Guad said, bowing again. The other two nodded.

"Alright, then, let's get you to the Explorer's Guild and get you registered," Yuki said, and dragged the drunk Buccaneer, Zakharia and Guad following him.

-To Be Continued-

* * *

A/N: Ah, I'm so sorry for the long hiatus! *I am so not making any promises anymore* This chapter was harder to write than I thought! Anyway, next chapter shall be uploaded with this one (and a possible 3rd one, though we'll just see how well that turns out)

Haha, so yeah. On to the next one! *GH, what are you doing here?*

And now I shall go to school *creeps to school gates*


	7. Chapter 7: Your reasons for joining us?

A/N: Hello, guys, and welcome back to let's play-Wait what, no, this isn't a let's play, shut the hell up, me.

Ahem, anyway, here's the next chapter (as I promised). I'm writting part of this in school, so yeah. If I manage to actually complete this here... well, that's a new achievement.

So, without further a do, let's get this over and done with-I mean let's do this! ^v^''

*warning and disclaimer in the first chapter (how many times do I have to write this...?)*

Enjoy!

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**Chronicles of the Drowned City**

**C.6: What are your reasons for going into the Labyrinth?**

The ship had already sailed into the middle of the ocean, sometimes passing chunks of land here and there. Supplies are still plenty, so they should be able to sail for a few more days.

Heinrich however, wishes for them to hurry on back to shore, supplies still plenty or not.

Cia and Adisa, on the other hand are enjoying this not-so-little boat ride. The ship is surprisingly quiet right now, save for the sound of the wind, the rocking waves, and Heinrich's constant puking. How the hell is he still able to puke? He hasn't eaten anything in a while. His stomach contents should be empty by now.

"Hey, Cia?" Adisa called.

"Yeah?"

"Why do you want to go into the Labyrinth?"

Cia started at the question. Why she wanted to go into the Labyrinth?

"Why do you ask?" Cia asked back.

"Hey, I already told you about myself, right? So now's your turn," Adisa answered. Cia sighed and thought about it for a second.

"Alright fine. You know the Labyrinth in Etria, right?" Cia asked. Adisa nodded and let her continue.

"My grandad was part of the Guild that managed to explore that Labyrinth down to the last floor."

"How many floors were there?" Adisa cut in.

"About 30. Each stratum has 5 floors, they say," Cia explained.

"Anyway," she continued,"my grandad... was the last victim of that Labyrinth, and the only member of that Guild that didn't survive while fighting the Primevil, the monster on the 30th floor, and I guess the root of the Labyrinth," Cia said, unsure of the last part. Adisa's expression turned from that of cheerfulness to pity. Not that kind of pity though.

"They buried him in the Labyrinth, just in front of where the Primevil once stood, just as my granddad wanted just before they left to fight him."

"I see...," Adisa said ,"then, why did you enter the Labyrinth? Your granddad died in one of them, after all!"

"And that's exactly why!" Cia exclaimed, her tone suddenly becoming brighter. She then looked up to the sky.

"I want to see what my granddad saw, smell what he did, heard what he heard, felt what he felt!" she said, then sighed.

"I want to know why he would die just to see it," she said,"my granddad's always been one for exploring..."

Adisa looked at her with thoughtfull eyes. That is _very _different from her reason for going into the Labyrinth. She just wanted to tag along with Heinrich just to make sure he'll be okay. The same thing he's been doing for her all these years.

"Well," Adisa began ,"I'm counting on you!" she said, patting Cia's shoulder. Cia just looked at her, confused.

"Well, um... yeah, I'm... counting on you, too," she decided to answer ,"though hasn't it been like that from the beginning?" she asked.

"Well... just to make sure I can," Adisa said.

"H-Hey, what do you mean 'just to make sure you can'?! Does that mean you couldn't trust me before?!" Cia exclaimed.

"Whoa, slow down there! It's not like that!" Adisa answered, raising her hand in defense. Laughter suddenly erupted from Cia, and both laughed soon after.

Heinrich looked at them from where he's standing. So that's why she wanted to join a Guild so badly?

He smiled, knowing that they had a firm resolve to explore the Labyrinth. He then saw the sea again.

Let the puking commence!

* * *

"Ok, so a... um... mind getting this guy off of me?"

The small group have finally arrived at the Explorer's Guild. Right as they arrived, the -still- drunk Buccaneer ran over to the guy who owns the place, and immediately tackled him-well, no, not tackled per se-, and begged him to sign him up to the Guild.

Guad ran over to him and got his rake ready.

"Well, I guess I have no choice... Sorry!" He said, and hit the Buccaneer with the rake, knocking him out and releasing the Guild Master.

"Ok, thanks," he said, dusting off his shoulders. Yuki grabbed the now knocked out man and dragged him towards the nearest seat.

"I'm really sorry about that!" The Farmer said.

"No, no, it's okay," the Guild Master replied. "So, what was it again? Rudollf, a Buccaneer, and you, Guad, was it, a Farmer." Guad and the others nodded.

"'K, then, your now members of the uh... Zephyr Guild," the Guild Master said, scribbling down something on a parchment. When he was done, he stamped it and gave the parchment to them.

"Here," he said,"keep this with you, just in case."

Guad happily took it, and stowed it in his bag, he then went to where the Buccaneer is seated and tried to lift him off the couch, but then remembered just how heavy that man is compared to him.

"Umm... sorry, Yuki, was it? Could you... help me get him up?" the Farmer said. The Shogun sighed, and lifted up the Buccaneer with little difficulty, and all four of them went out of the Guild House.

* * *

After getting the Buccaneer up, they traveled to Napier's Firm. She did say something about not being able to sell certain things until they have permission to. Since they have the said permission now, they decided to talk with Napier again. If of course, she'll let them in...

Which, to their surprise she _did_.

"Glad to know that kid isn't with you right now," Napier said, sounding relieved.

"Kid? Who?" Zakharia asked.

"The Monk. The red-head Monk," she replied, annoyed.

"Well, you'll be seeing more of her soon," Yuki said.

"Tch... So, what can I do for you today?" She asked. Yuki then handed over the documents to her, which contained permission for the shop to have all items available for sale to them. She carefully read it over and nodded.

"Ok, then, so you survived the first quest. Good," she said. "Right then," she began, putting the parchments in one of the drawers, and taking something out of the cabinets.

"There are somethings I couldn't sell to you before," she said, then putting the item she grabbed on the table ,"like these," she said. The others looked at it, puzzled.

That thing looks like an ordinary long piece of thread. Why was that item not available to them until they got authorization to explore the Labyrinth?

"This baby here is called the 'Ariadne Thread'. Oh, and before you think this thing isn't important just because it looks like a piece of string," she explained ,"it's a valuable item. It let's you teleport back into the city instantly."

The others looked baffled by this. That string? Teleporting them back? Well, maybe that is a valuable-if not, the _most valuable_ item to have in a Labyrinth. Besides weapons and armor of course, but those can break. This thread can help them if that happens.

Thank God they don't have to walk back everytime they get into the Labyrinth!

The Buccaneer is especially happy with that, and went to grab the thread. Just before his fingers came into contact with the wire, though, the shopkeeper slapped his hand away from it.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk... Did I ever say that this is going to be free?" she said, waving her pointing finger left and right ,"or any of the items here, for that matter?"

Yuki sighed. Ah, I knew it. This girl isn't going to give up the wire just like that. This is a shop, after all... everything here is bussiness.

"Fine. How much are you going to charge us that for?" Yuki asked. Hopefully, he can bargain with her.

"I'll sell it for a 100 En each. Lowest price you'll get~. I usually charge higher for these babies," she said. Yuki's expression darkened a bit. '_Lowest price?'_ he thought ,'_Like hell. You think it's easy to got that much money?'_

"So, will you take it or not?" she asked. "Of course, we have quite a bit of these in stock, so feel free to come back here any time you want. I'll have these ready," she said. Guad nodded.

"Alright, then... we might as well collect some money first, right?" He said, then excused himself and the others and got out of the shop.

"Oy, you think item gathering'll do the trick?" Rudollf suggested.

"Item gathering?" Zakharia asked.

"Yeah. 'Heard you can find spots to take herbs or mine stuff. Gather those items 'n sell 'em. They say those items sell for more than any material you'll get from monsters on said floor," Rudollf explained.

"Oh right, I've heard of those," Zakharia inquired ,"my old Guild members took some items from spots like that, too," she said.

" 'Old Guild members'?" the Buccanneer said, surprised ,"Kid, you've been to a Labyrinth before?" he asked. Zakharia nodded.

"But only to the second floor, so you shouldn't expect too much out of me," Zakharia said.

"Should we go now, then?" Yuki said, and started walking, the Zodiak clinging onto him. The Buccaneer shrugged, and started walking, Guad following suit.

* * *

As soon as they arrived in the Labyrinth, even the now only semi-intoxicated Buccaneer got sober.

What?

This Labyrith look amazing. That's all they could think right now. Yuki urged all of them to continue walking, their first order of bussiness being to find the sunbathing spot and collect some frog parts while they're at it.

It's nightime right now, as the sky indicates, so more frogs should come out. But...

How will they find that sunbathing spot?

Zakharia let go of the Shogun for a little and stopped on her tracks to read the stars. It's easier to do at night, so this shouldn't take too long. Hopefully, this'll also help them with finding the sunbathing spot.

Which of course it didn't.

"So, got anything?" Yuki asked. Zakharia shook her head, and started making her way towards where Yuki's standing right now. She then tripped on one of the tree roots sticking out of the ground. Yuki caught her just as she was about to hit the forest floor.

"Careful! Next time, just stop me when your about to do a reading," he said. He knows that she's capable of seeing without her eyes, but she's not really... good at it yet, so they still need to keep a close watch on her until she's good at it.

But, then again, latching onto someone all the time wouldn't be a good idea. Maybe he'll help her train that skill for a little while.

It's to dangerous to do so in the Labyrinth though, so hey, better safe than sorry, right?

He then held her hand and guided her through the passages, the others following behind him. Guad hesitated at first, but curiosity took over and he decided to ask anyway.

"Hey, Zakharia?" He called ,"why did you decide to go into the Labyrinth?"

"I just wanted to continue exploring again," she said. "I lost my sight because of a wound I got in the Labyrinth, but I can cast spells, and it's not like my skill's rusted or anything. I can manage."

"Really?" Rudollf asked, pulling out another vial of liquor he happened to sneak in.

"Where the hell did you get that?" The Shogun asked.

"Sneaked it in." And as the Buccaneer said that, he opened the lid, and started drinking. He only drank a little though, as Guad knocked the vial off of his hands, spilling the contents out.

"Hey!"

"Sorry, but we can't be having a drunk person walking around in the Labyrinth. You want us to die, or something?!" yelled the Farmer.

"Wait."

Everyone turned to Zakharia. Has she got something from the stars?

"I think I know where the sunbathing spot is," she said.

She lead everyone to the small clearing on the northern edge of the map. It's small, but the moonlight pierced right through the trees. Also, the area seems safe enough from monsters. If that fisherman can sneak past the monsters and head here, he could sunbathe anytime he wants to.

"Ok, so right here, is it?" said Rudollf, as he marked the map. His mapping skills are good. Maybe he could be a replacement in case Heinrich's not there with them?

They then heard rustlinng noises coming from the bushes near them. Three frogs then came out. Abnormal looking ones.

These are huge, white skinned frogs. Just like the ones Yuki and Zakharia fought when they entered the Labyrinth for the first time.

They all got their weapons ready. But, just as they were about to strike, Rudollf stepped forward and walked towards the frogs, brandishing his weapon, a wide grin on his face.

"You needed frog parts, right?"

He got his weapon ready, standing in his usual battle stance.

"Then I'll slice 'em up real good!" He then rushed forward, weapon in hand, slicing up the frogs, making sure to keep the parts they need intact. With a few swift, but not-so-accurate strikes, he defeated the frogs, and a few other enemies-those fish head things- that came at them. Most likely from hearing all the ruckus that's going on.

"There. Got 'em," the Buccaneer said, putting his sword back in it's sheath. Yuki was quite impressed by the man's skill. Sure, he didn't wield it like a Shogun would, but hey, there's a pirate for you. That sword looked big, it's impressive how _easily_ that man wielded it.

They alll picked up the frog parts-the cheeks and legs- and went off, narrowly avoiding a Great Lynx that nearly set it's eyes on them.

As soon as they got out of the Labyrinth, they went towards the pub, handing over the items for the quest.

* * *

"Oh goodie, you got 'dem frog parts!" The bartender then took a look at the map they held out. "Ooh, and the sunbathing spot too, I'll take it? Nice, you got all two quests done!"

She then handed over three tent sets, and a pouch, with 100 En inside. Zakharia took the pouch, and Yuki took the tents.

"Right then! I'll see ya'll! Pubs 'bout to close, and there aren't any other quests at the moment," the bartender said. She then grabbed her things and walked towards the front door, waving her hand at them as she opened it.

"Come by often! There could be some new quests available for you guys!" She then walked out of the front door. As soon as she did, Yuki and the others walked out as well. Rudollf not forgetting to smuggle in some liquor for himself, of course.

What? The man's desprate for a drink!

And you know desperation makes people do things.

Well, a man can't live without a friend, right?

-To Be Continued-

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A/N: Ahh, I'm so sorry for not updating after MORE THAN A YEAR PROBABLY. So, I decided to write two long chapters to compensate for that. GOMEN!

Ahem, anyway, yeah, so hope you guys enjoyed, and feel free to smack me upside the head if I don't update after too long... I'm that forgetfull and lazy...

'K then, bye!

And now I shall watch videos *creeps into youtube*


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